William Burnham Woods

William Burnham Woods (August 3, 1824 – May 14, 1887) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States . An appointee of President Rutherford B. Hayes , he served from 1881 until 1887. He wrote the majority opinion in _United States v. Harris _, involving the constitutionality of the Ku Klux Klan Act , and _Presser v. Illinois _, involving the application of the Second Amendment to the states; both cases adopted a narrow interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment . He dissented rarely and wrote mostly uncontroversial opinions.

Born in Newark, Ohio , Woods received his degree from Yale University . He practiced law in Newark and entered politics, soon rising to be the speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives . A Democrat, he initially opposed the Lincoln administration 's policies but supported the Union once the Civil War broke out. He joined the Union army as an officer, participating in a number of battles; after his discharge as a brevet major general in 1866, he settled in Alabama, where he practiced law and engaged in commercial activities. In 1868, he was elected to an Alabama state court on the Republican ticket.

In 1869, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed Woods a circuit judge for the Fifth Circuit, which covered six Southern states. In the _Slaughter-House Cases _ and _United States v. Cruikshank _, he favored a broad interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment that contrasted with the narrower one he supported on the Supreme Court. In another case, he upheld "separate but equal " schools. Hayes nominated Woods to the Supreme Court in 1880, and he was confirmed by the Senate 39–8. On the Court, he was a diligent worker who wrote more opinions than any other associate justice during his six-year tenure. He was struck ill in spring 1886 and died in 1887.

Contents

• 1 Early life, education, and career

• 2 Circuit judge

• 3 Supreme Court nomination

• 4 Supreme Court service

• 5 Legacy

• 6 See also

• 7 References

Early life, education, and career

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William Burnham Woods : 221  was born in Newark, Ohio , on August 3, 1824, to Ezekiel S. Woods, a Kentucky-born merchant and farmer, and Sarah Burnham Woods, who was from New England. : 1328  He attended Western Reserve College (now Case Western Reserve University ) : 142  before transferring to Yale University , from which he graduated as valedictorian in 1845. : 179  After returning to Newark, he studied law under the tutelage of S. D. King, a prominent lawyer; the two became partners after Woods was admitted to the bar in 1847. : 1328  Woods took an interest in politics in the 1850s. : 31  While some evidence suggests that he was at first a Whig , he later became a member of the Democratic Party . : 31  In 1855, he married Anne E. Warner, with whom he had two children. : 221 

Woods became Newark's mayor in 1856, and the following year he was elected as a Democrat to the Ohio House of Representatives , immediately becoming its speaker . : 1328  : 572  At first Woods staunchly opposed the policies of the Lincoln administration , but when the Civil War broke out, he supported the Union cause, : 31  : 12  vowing to stand by the federal government "in sunshine or storm, in peace or war, right or wrong". : 13  In February 1862, he joined the 76th Ohio Infantry Regiment as a lieutenant colonel , becoming colonel in September when the previous colonel – his brother, Charles R. Woods – was promoted to brigadier general . : 12  : 572 

Woods served in the Battle of Shiloh , the Siege of Vicksburg , and Sherman's March . : 31  He was made brigadier general in 1865 : 899  and participated in the Grand Review of the Armies in Washington. : 222  Just before his discharge in February 1866, he was brevetted a major general at the recommendation of Generals Sherman, Ulysses S. Grant , and John A. Logan .[[9

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